Many ceiling fans have been designed to carry out particular services. As with all inventions, a patent is the assurance of an improvement in the art. With ceiling fans, the improvements providing the most advantage and convenience are the components which hold the fans in a firm position against the ceiling of the ceiling of the building structure. Normally, these involve some type of bracket structure designed to act as a cooperating link between some portion of the ceiling fan and the ceiling, or even some modification of a portion of a ceiling fan itself to permit the ceiling fan to be held in position by means of a long screw. In such instances, a ceiling fan was not intended to be readily detachable from its current substantial position.
We contemplated the design of a ceiling fan which could be easily and quickly removed from a current attachment position against the ceiling of one room in our house and then easily and conveniently installed at a place of suitable attachment in another room, all steps to be accomplished by one person.
We analyzed carefully what the procedure would be in removing a ceiling fan which is currently in a permanent position. In doing so, we can describe the steps necessary:
1. Shut off the electricity at the breaker box.
2. Remove the canopy trim from the ceiling fan.
3. Unscrew the three screws holding the canopy component to the ceiling plate.
4. Then, a second person is needed to hold the fan while the first person disconnects the four wires from the house circuit.
We made particular note of the operation, and of what could be simplified to accomplish our thoughts.
Obviously, the major steps in removing a ceiling fan are the disconnection from the house circuit and the difficulty in unscrewing the long screws holding the fan in place.
Thus, in considering a possible manner in which a ceiling fan might be improved, we eventually developed the invention which we are describing herein.
Then, in accordance with the usual practice, we conducted a patent search which revealed the following patents which were considered to be the most closely related to our invention:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,808,071ChauFeb. 28, 1989U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,601ShawcrossDec. 3, 1991U.S. Pat. No. 5,845,886McCortmickDec. 8, 1998U.S. Pat. No. 5,947,436Bucher et alSep. 7, 1999U.S. Pat. No. 6,171,061HsuJan. 9, 2001U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,488PearceNov. 18, 2003U.S. Pat. No. 6,653,558Bucher et alNov. 25, 2003U.S. Pat. No. 6,979,108BergeDec. 27, 2005U.S. Pat. No. 7,028,963Silva et alApr. 18, 2006U.S. Pat. No. 7,306,191ChenDec. 11, 2007U.S. Pat. App. 2002/0163812TsengNov. 7, 2002
U.S. Pat. No. 4,808,071, to Chau relates to a ceiling fan. The switch unit is readily adaptable from the fan motor for service. FIGS. 2 and 3 show a unique switch unit with the clamp in open and closed positions.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,601, to Shawcross describes a ceiling fan which has a removable blade hub and switch housing adapter plate which enables replacement of the blade hub without removing the components which secure the blade in place.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,845,886, to McCormick describes an adjustable ceiling fan for use in various recreational vehicles. The fan is positioned on a spring-biased adjustable support which is formed of two parallel members placed between opposite walls of the vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,947,436, to Bucher et al describes a canopy hole cover assembly for a ceiling fan, particularly a hanger bracket device, intendant to conceal the mechanical units from view. The patent briefly mentions the use of “light kits” but does not describe any. The patent more specifically shows its adaptation to the slanted walls of a cathedral.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,171,061, to Hsu describes a suspending bracket for a ceiling fan constructed of two portions which are easily assembled. FIG. 3 shows the manner in which the device is assembled.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,488 to Pearce describes a ceiling fan and light kit assembly which is produced for quick assembly. The light kit is shown in Figures and 3 as being assembled.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,653,558, to Bucher et al describes numerous versions of a ceiling fan in which the bracket assembly 10 is easily mountable to an electrical box, or other support device which is installed within a ceiling. In FIGS. 1 and 22 inventor shows a tether 80 connecting the male and female brackets to allow the two fixtures to hang while the device is being connected to the house wiring.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,979,108 to Berge describes various components of bracket means for securing a light in position.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,028,963, to Silva et al describes various forms of a mounting bracket for securing a ceiling light in position.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,306,191, to Chen describes a suspension structure for hanging a ceiling fan.
U.S. Pat. Application 2002/0163812 to Tseng describes a fast assembly structure for a ceiling fan and ceiling lamp.